'Dying Light 2' Dev Opens Up About the Different Factions, Who's the "Wildcard"

When Dying Light 2 was first unveiled during E3 2018, fans of the iconic zombie game were instantly enthralled by the much bigger map and decadent horror components. When Fallout: New Vegas' Chris Avellone took to the Xbox stage to show off his latest project to the world, we knew it was going to be good. From learning about how choices will impact the game, to how much bigger the sequel will be, it's been an exciting time learning about what's next.

In the latest bit of news about the upcoming zombie thriller, one dev opened up a bit about the game's factions and how they are a "wildcard" when looking at the story as a whole:

"So how it works is that in the world of Dying Light 2 you have a few main factions," said lead designer Tymon Smektala in a recent interview with the folks over at PCGamesN. "The Peacekeepers, the Scavengers, and a few more. But there are also smaller groups like the Untainted that can have an impact on the flow of the story to some extent – they're like wildcards in the story, something unexpected."

The dev added, "So, for example, the Peacekeepers and the Scavengers are fighting for an abandoned swimming pool because it's a great place for an outpost," he continued. "The Peacekeepers want to create a training ground there because it's easy to mop the blood from tiles, while the Scavengers want to start growing plants that they can use to produce fuel – they have this craftsman who understands that there are special types of plants you can use to create biofuel that powers vehicles. The Untainted believe that the way to salvation, the way to solve the problems of the world, is to grow plants that can be used to create drugs.

"The drugs have different uses but some of them are powerful stimulants that change how you behave in combat. So you may think, 'I want this in my world because that's something that will help', but then this has a nasty consequence in the game because it changes the relationship between the Scavengers and the Peacekeepers – and those change the gameplay in unexpected ways because it's not only you that has access to these powerful stimulants, but also the general population of the city. As a result, you'll start encountering bandits and other people who are using them, and sometimes the encounters will be more difficult because of that decision."

As for who is the "wildcard," the designer opened up a bit more on the topic of the Peacekeepers, saying "Yes. So the Peacekeepers, the Scavengers, and the other factions are basically a theme that runs through the whole sequel. These guys have agendas, they have philosophies, and they have specific ways to approach the situations they're in. For example, the Peacekeepers have a very simple philosophy: they just want every infected dead. So what they're doing is, if they take hold of a district, they try to clean out the dark places, and then kill the infected on the streets. You can join them and help with this.

"Each group wants something different, but it's a theme that goes through the whole city, the whole region – everywhere you can encounter those guys. The Untainted, and other wildcard groups like that, are smaller, and more tied to a specific region and location. They're not as organised, but still they can change the flow of the narrative."

Unfortunately we don't have a release date yet at this time, though you can learn more about the upcoming game with our previous coverage here.

Thoughts so far on what we've seen about Dying Light 2? Sound off in the comment section below, or hit me up over on Twitter @DirtyEffinHippy!